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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 4 Hansard (27 March) . . Page.. 912 ..

MR MOORE (continuing):

is the role of the Manager of Government Business to move the motion for suspension of that member.

Mr Kaine understands that. He understood that, when I stood to move that motion to have him suspended from the service of the Assembly, it was the procedure. It was not a case of the fact that I was very keen to see Mr Kaine booted out. I did not vote then to boot him out because I was keen to see him go out.

Mr Kaine: There are times when you enjoy it.

MR MOORE: But that was not why I jumped to my feet. Perhaps on that occasion I did so a little more enthusiastically that I might have at other times. So I think members have misunderstood the standing orders as far as that goes.

There is a second issue that I think is quite important. Members have said that this matter should go to the Administration and Procedure Committee because it is so important. I would remind members that there have been many precedents, from the beginning of the Assembly in 1989, for changes to standing orders happening on the floor of the house, so this is not an absolute necessity, but I accept that this is going to the Administration and Procedure Committee.

The third point I would like to make, Mr Speaker, is that a great deal has been made-it started with Mr Stanhope-of the fact that I somehow was using parliamentary privilege to defame Ms Duff, the President of the TLC and the Secretary of the Australian Nursing Federation ACT Branch. Mr Speaker, had it been necessary to do such a thing as part of my responsibility as minister I would have done it unhesitatingly; but I would do it in the context of Mr Berry drawing to my attention the issue of freedom of speech that we keep in the back of the standing orders. I take that into account.

But, Mr Speaker, the truth is there was no defamation. If there was defamation, why hasn't it been tested outside, because I have used exactly the same statements on radio and in the paper-everywhere. I was not using parliamentary privilege to identify the fact that Ms Duff was the President of the Trades and Labour Council as well as Secretary of the Nursing Federation. I have to say, for the life of me, that I don't see why drawing attention to that is defaming somebody. The implication that I draw from that is that perhaps she has her roles confused. I have done that publicly on many occasions.

MR SPEAKER: Order! We are drifting off the debate.

MR MOORE: On many occasions. Thank you, Mr Speaker, and I think that is why we are referring this to a standing committee. Mr Quinlan suggested that I had been supporting Ms Burke in defiance of the ruling of the Deputy Speaker at the time. Mr Speaker, I took a point of order under standing orders. I think I did so twice. I questioned the Deputy Speaker's interpretation of the standing order. That is a normal procedure. As Ms Burke has now reiterated, I encouraged her to leave it.

Finally, Mr Speaker, when members of the Administration and Procedure Committee are considering this, I would ask them to consider the view that Ms Tucker has put-that this standing order is a law-and-order response. It is not, Mr Speaker. It is a sporting response. It is anything but a law-and-order response. The sin bin is what we use in ice

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